Toxoplasma gondii infection, from predation to schizophrenia: can animal behaviour help us understand human behaviour?

J Exp Biol. 2013 Jan 1;216(Pt 1):99-112. doi: 10.1242/jeb.074716.

Toxoplasma gondii infection, from predation to schizophrenia: can animal behaviour help us understand human behaviour?

Webster JP, Kaushik M, Bristow GC, McConkey GA.

Department of Infectious Disease Epidemiology, School of Public Health, Imperial College Faculty of Medicine, London, W2 1PG, UK.

We examine the role of the protozoan Toxoplasma gondii as a manipulatory parasite and question what role study of infections in its natural intermediate rodent hosts and other secondary hosts, including humans, may elucidate in terms of the epidemiology, evolution and clinical applications of infection. In particular, we focus on the potential association between T. gondii and schizophrenia. We introduce the novel term 'T. gondii-rat manipulation-schizophrenia model' and propose how future behavioural research on this model should be performed from a biological, clinical and ethically appropriate perspective.

 PMID: 23225872 [PubMed - in process]